Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterrey and Palma Soriano

For one person, living is cheaper in Palma Soriano: $1,549 a month against $1,641 in Monterrey, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. The total is higher in Monterrey despite lower rent and utilities.

78

Cost of Living Index in Monterrey
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Monterrey Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Palma Soriano
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Palma Soriano Living Index

Jump to prices

Monterrey

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,641

/mo nomad

Palma Soriano

🇨🇺 Cuba

$1,549

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monterrey and in Palma Soriano

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Monterrey and in Palma Soriano actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,641 in Monterrey versus $1,549 in Palma Soriano.

Monterrey $1,641
Palma Soriano $1,549

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,573 in Monterrey versus $1,861 in Palma Soriano.

Monterrey $2,573
Palma Soriano $1,861

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,504 in Monterrey versus $2,174 in Palma Soriano.

Monterrey $3,504
Palma Soriano $2,174

Living in Monterrey is roughly 6% more expensive than in Palma Soriano, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Monterrey 21% above, Palma Soriano 15% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.37 MX$250

$5.07 CUP 122

163.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.95 MX$897

$24.87 CUP 597

92.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.79 MX$202

$5.13 CUP 123

110.33%

Cappuccino

$3.77 MX$70.4

$3.13 CUP 75.2

20.45%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.51 MX$28.26

$1.28 CUP 30.63

17.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.03 MX$19.25

$0.93 CUP 22.24

10.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.48 MX$46.41

$2.95 CUP 70.9

-15.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 MX$81.5

$2.51 CUP 60.2

73.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 MX$35.43

$1.96 CUP 47.02

-3.57%

White Bread (500g)

$2.85 MX$53.3

$1.41 CUP 33.93

102.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 MX$34.71

$0.99 CUP 23.72

87.88%

Eggs

$2.47 MX$46.12

$1.16 CUP 27.95

112.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.81 MX$221

$6.15 CUP 148

92.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 MX$168

$6.07 CUP 146

47.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.57 MX$235

$11.15 CUP 268

12.74%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 MX$59.8

$1.82 CUP 43.78

75.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 MX$28.12

$1.22 CUP 29.38

22.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.12 MX$39.74

$1.48 CUP 35.50

43.24%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.33 MX$43.64

$1.48 CUP 35.52

57.43%

Potato (1kg)

$2.22 MX$41.58

$1.02 CUP 24.58

117.65%

Onion (1kg)

$2.58 MX$48.34

$1.01 CUP 24.29

155.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 MX$27.04

$0.98 CUP 23.42

47.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MX$22.85

$1.07 CUP 25.78

14.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.80 MX$89.7

$2.97 CUP 71.3

61.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.30 MX$249

$10.06 CUP 241

32.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 MX$36.14

$2.98 CUP 71.6

-35.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 MX$53.4

$1.98 CUP 47.58

44.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 MX$14.94

$0.24 CUP 5.74

233.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.94 MX$579

$29.59 CUP 710

4.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.83 MX$34.28

$1.77 CUP 42.38

3.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 MX$19.78

$0.34 CUP 8.05

211.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.82 MX$202

$12.99 CUP 312

-16.71%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MX$27.54

$1.12 CUP 26.79

31.25%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$24.1K MX$450.4K

$67.2K CUP 1.6M

-64.15%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.5K MX$440.2K

$46.8K CUP 1.1M

-49.73%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$115 MX$2,144

$54.3 CUP 1,303

111.03%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$26.37 MX$493

$9.99 CUP 240

163.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.70 MX$481

$147 CUP 3,538

-82.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.53 MX$571

$39.52 CUP 948

-22.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.27 MX$398

$10.06 CUP 242

111.43%

Cinema Ticket

$4.96 MX$92.8

$0.99 CUP 23.73

401.01%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$679 MX$12.7K

$101 CUP 2,432

569.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.2K MX$265.3K

$11.8K CUP 284.0K

19.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.2 MX$1,350

$64.0 CUP 1,536

12.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.94 MX$784

$35.66 CUP 856

17.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 MX$2,011

$85.4 CUP 2,049

25.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 MX$2,219

$108 CUP 2,598

9.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,018 MX$19.0K

$868 CUP 20.8K

17.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 MX$13.5K

$792 CUP 19.0K

-8.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,966 MX$36.8K

$759 CUP 18.2K

159.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,416 MX$26.5K

$652 CUP 15.6K

117.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,203 MX$78.6K

$321 CUP 7,705

1209.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,782 MX$52.0K

$330 CUP 7,924

742.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,096 MX$20.5K

$40.78 CUP 979

2586.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.79

8.33

41.54%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Monterrey: November 2, 2026

Last update for Palma Soriano: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Monterrey

$722 44%

Palma Soriano

$792 51.2% 9.8% $71

Groceries & Markets

Monterrey

$302 18.4%

Palma Soriano

$215 13.9% 28.8% $87

Eating Out

Monterrey

$216 13.2%

Palma Soriano

$122 7.9% 43.4% $94

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterrey

$167 10.2%

Palma Soriano

$212 13.7% 27% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Monterrey

$153 9.3%

Palma Soriano

$132 8.5% 13.8% $21

Getting Around

Monterrey

$41 2.5%

Palma Soriano

$34 2.2% 17.6% $7.3

Sport & Entertainment

Monterrey

$40 2.5%

Palma Soriano

$41 2.7% 2.6% $1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,018 in Monterrey and $868 in Palma Soriano. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Monterrey pays about 27 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $48 in Monterrey vs $25 in Palma Soriano for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $302 vs $215 per month, with Palma Soriano cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Monterrey

🇨🇺 Palma Soriano

🕒 Local time

16:41 4:41 PM

17:41 5:41 PM

1 h ahead of Monterrey

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,142,994

74,930

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Cuban Peso CUP $

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.35 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

100 CUP = 4.17 USD

100 CUP = 3.73 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CUP, USD, EUR to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 18.7 MXN (100 MXN = 5.35 USD). 1 EUR = 20.9 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

Cuban Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 24 CUP (100 CUP = 4.17 USD). 1 EUR = 26.82 CUP (100 CUP = 3.73 EUR).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Monterrey Palma Soriano 2,560 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Monterrey
Palma Soriano

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Monterrey vs Palma Soriano: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,641 in Monterrey and $1,549 in Palma Soriano, so Palma Soriano is about 6% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Monterrey is about 27 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,018 in Monterrey versus $868 in Palma Soriano. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Palma Soriano – a meal for two runs $25 versus $48 in Monterrey. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $1,641 per month in Monterrey versus $1,549 in Palma Soriano – Palma Soriano is about 6% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Palma Soriano is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Palma Soriano gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Monterrey. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.